Wong’s election makes ALA history At the conclusion of the 2021 Annual Conference Virtual, Patricia “Patty” M. Wong began her term as the first Asian American to serve as ALA president. The American Rescue Plan Act and libraries When President Biden signed into law the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 on March … Continue reading 2021 Year in Review
Signed into law by President Joe Biden on November 15, 2021, IIJA includes a historic investment in advancing digital equity and an opportunity for libraries to leverage and expand their roles in that work. The Digital Equity Act (DEA), a provision within IIJA, includes a federal investment of $2.75 billion over five years to promote … Continue reading What Libraries Need to Know about the Digital Equity Act
ALASKA In October Juneau voted 6,580–1,786 in favor of renewing the city’s 3% temporary sales tax for five years. A portion of the approved tax goes toward supporting libraries. ARKANSAS On November 9 Little Rock approved a library levy increase from 3.3 to 3.8 mills by a vote of 4,842–1,973. The increase represents the first … Continue reading Referenda Roundup 2021: Final Report
Since the Policy Corps’ founding in 2018, members have been active on a range of issues that have increased their expertise and networks while expanding ALA’s policy advocacy reach. As ALA begins to accept applications for its fourth cohort, here’s an update on members’ recent activities. School library funding When the American Rescue Plan Act … Continue reading Catching Up with ALA Policy Corps
Libraries notched many wins in 2021: In Illinois, the state’s April 6 election saw four of five ballot measures passing. To many library workers’ relief, a threatened reduction in Ohio’s support for public libraries—from 1.7% to 1.66% of the general fund—did not make it into the final version of the state’s budget. In addition, all … Continue reading Referenda Roundup 2021
In September 2020, the American Library Association’s (ALA) Public Programs Office announced it would provide nearly $2 million in grants to small and rural libraries of all types to help them address pressing concerns in their communities. Through this Libraries Transforming Communities (LTC): Focus on Small and Rural Libraries grant program, more than 600 libraries … Continue reading Conversations Creating Change
Sessions underscored that stories—of individuals, of libraries, of communities—are at the core of library advocacy. “It’s really all about storytelling,” observed Beth Nawalinski, executive director of United for Libraries, during the conference. Representation in collections At “Auditing Diversity in Library Collections,” Sarah Voels, community engagement librarian at Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Public Library (CRPL), described the … Continue reading Advocacy through Storytelling
Through the ALA COVID Library Relief Fund, grantees representing academic, public, school, and tribal libraries will receive grants between $30,000 and $50,000 to support library services and operations. The ALA COVID Library Relief Fund represents a significant nonfederal grant opportunity for libraries. The funds support libraries’ efforts to increase and enhance technology access, collection development, … Continue reading ALA Distributes COVID-19 Emergency Relief
Crash Course in Library Budgeting and Finance By Glen E. Holt and Leslie E. Holt Budgeting and finance can be daunting for people whose previous library experience has focused more on reference or circulation work. But this title delivers a concentrated overview of everything a neophyte library administrator may need, breaking down information … Continue reading Getting Money for Your Library
Program and application essentials, including eligibility, are outlined in a new FCC-American Library Association (ALA) fact sheet for libraries. A household is eligible if one of its members meets any of the following criteria: Has an income at or below 135% of the federal poverty guidelines or participates in certain assistance programs, such as the Supplemental … Continue reading FCC Opens Emergency Broadband Benefit Program
Usually the calls were about the kids who frequented the library—which ones had graduated, who was off to college or the military, and sometimes, sadly, who had been shot or killed, or gone to jail. One call still haunts me: A teenage boy I knew well was facing serious time in a juvenile detention center. … Continue reading A Hurting Thing
These funds are intended to bolster library operations and services, including technology access, collections, digital instruction, staffing, and outreach. Funds can be used to maintain and amplify existing service strategies or add new ones. “Libraries have demonstrated extraordinary innovation over the past year in creating new materials, programs, and service delivery models, but they are … Continue reading ALA Announces COVID Library Relief Fund
